


Periwinkle

by WynnLo



Category: The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Genre: F/F, Gen, I'll continue to add tags as I go, Lactation, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Nursing, Other, The Priestly Family, This is a Priestly Family Story, Toddler Andy, We Are the Priestlys
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-24
Updated: 2019-03-02
Packaged: 2019-10-15 09:44:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 17,881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17526389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WynnLo/pseuds/WynnLo
Summary: And the Devil Gave Birth to An Angel.





	1. One

**Author's Note:**

> FIRST!  
> Read this note!!!
> 
>  
> 
> In The Devil Wears Prada, Miranda was only truly shown as the ‘Evil Employer'. However, Miranda 'The Mother' was hardly depicted on screen. 
> 
> With that being said, I understand if at some parts following this story Miranda may seem out of character. But I can say with confidence that given what little she’s had to say about her girls in the actual film, she seems like a completely L0ViNG mother if nothing else.  
> I’m saying this because in my other story (Nothing Like Her Love) for this fandom (which Ao3 has deleted...I swear this site pisses me off), someone had said that they have a hard time seeing Miranda breastfeeding, and I get it. Seriously. I understand why.  
> I can easily see some people saying that her personality wouldn’t allow for that kind of intimacy. Regardless, it is something that will occur frequently within this story. Sorry, not sorry.  
> Enjoy & Review!
> 
> P.S - This story will alternate primarily between Andrea and Miranda’s perspectives, but other characters will take the reins at different points.

º

It was a frigid day at Runway.

Even as the month of January dragged on by as it always did, mother nature was well into winter and the current decline in the outside temperatures were unforgiving in their efforts.

However, New York’s blistering winds and its daily dose of snow had very little to do with why every employee at Elias-Clarke were running wild, caught in a frenzy. There had been an ugly blizzard recently, which meant that roads had been blocked off for nearly a week and most, if not all, public establishments were closed for business until weather reports deemed it safe to resume everyday life.

This unfortunate happening meant that they were behind schedule.

 _Terribly_ …behind schedule.

 Fashion week was approaching, and the Devil was demanding blood.

“What the fuck is this?”

Stood in front of the set for a photoshoot, Miranda Priestly was frowning in disapproval at the current model on display. “Can someone please tell me whoever approved this god-awful ensemble, because it wasn’t me. Nigel?” She turned a cool gaze to her style editor.

And, yes. Even her most loyal and favored employee hadn’t been exempted from her wrath today.

The man frantically flipped through a binder of sketches as he fumbled for a response. “But it’s here, Miranda. You’ve written–”

Miranda silenced him by merely raising a hand. She gritted her teeth. “Even drunk on the ocean floor, I would never approve of something so atrocious. This is _not_ the time for losing brain cells, Nigel.” She ripped the sketch from the binder and hissed at the model on set. “Why are you still _here?_ Where is the next girl!? And where is that blockhead of an intern with my coffee?”

People scrambled.

At one of the highest floors, garments and fabrics of every color and texture were strewn all about the room. There had been a number of models cocooned in measuring tape, while others were either in the process of being dressed or having their make-up and hair done. The clomping of heels echoed throughout the broad space. Clouds of dusty foundation and plumes of hairspray encompassed workstations with vanities and bright lights.

It was a cacophony of madness that had only ceased by the sound of a terrible, ear-splitting cry that washed over the room.

The editor-in-chief wouldn’t have acknowledged it as anything significant, although, this cry was a cry she’d known all too well. After all, she’s spent many nights trying to soothe this particular cry and it caught her attention in a way that nothing else could.

        It alarmed her: the sight of her daughter in the arms of the most recently-hired nanny, drenched from her neck to the soles of her little Burberry slip-ons in some sort of liquid. The sitter seemed troubled and uncertain as she struggled with the diaper bag and her daughter’s mini winter coat hanging off one arm, while she carried Andrea in the other arm.

        The toddler was dripping from her feet as she immediately spotted Miranda in the sea of people, reaching out for her mother while she bawled, _“Mo-oo-oomyy!”_

        Her little face was red and scrunched up in displeasure as her mother rushed from where she stood.

Slightly panicked by the situation, Miranda barked at the sitter. _“What the hell happened?”_

        The girl hesitated as she transferred Andy to her mother’s waiting arms. “We were on the elevator Miss, and there was a bit of an incident. It was completely unexpected and –”

        “A bit of an incident?” Miranda snapped. She was caught between wanting to bite the caretaker’s head off and trying to console her sobbing one-year-old. At this point, Andrea’s howling had only settled slightly since being held by her mother. “Tell me, _why is my child covered in_ –”

        “Oh, dear God.” Miranda’s newest assistant squeaked upon entering the room, gaining the attention of all its occupants. She’d held a misshapen cardboard tray of tilted coffee cups in a trembling hand as she scanned the scene.

Immediately after catching the potent fragrance of caffeine from where Andy’s clothes were soaked through to the skin, it hadn’t taken Miranda long to make sense of the situation. The chief editor’s eyes lit up in fury.

In that moment, if Andy weren’t still hiccupping, one would easily be able to hear a snippet of thread hit the floor if it fell.

        “ _You_. You’re responsible for this? You spilled coffee on my infant daughter?”

        “We were in the elevator on our way up and it was a bit cramped, Miss.” The sitter spoke up then. Her English accent grew thick as she tried to clarify. “People rushed out and she –” The girl pointed towards the intern, “–she didn’t mean to. It was an honest mistake. People pushed her from behind.”

        The intern looked close to tears as everyone in the room held their breaths. “It was an accident, Ms.Priestly,” the poor girl said, half-filled coffee cups leaning dangerously now in her unsteady hands.

        Mindful of her child in her arms, Miranda forced herself to count backwards from ten in her head. Afterwards, she exhaled like a caged dragon. And if someone looked close enough, it just might have seemed as though the woman was breathing out steam.

        A blind man could see that Miranda was livid.

        “And just what _idiot_ sent you for an iced coffee when we’re in negative-degree weather?” The editor seethed as she eyed the trampled tray.

        The room went silent again.

        The girl looked to the floor in utter embarrassment. With all of the attention on her, she struggled to hold her head high. Although, she still fought to gather whatever amount of courage she had left as she stated, “That was f-for me.” Then she looked pleadingly at her employer. “I’m _sorry_ , Ms.Priestly. I swear I didn’t know she was your daughter.”

        “So, you thought it would have been acceptable to have done this to anyone else’s child?”

         “No!” The intern shook her head frantically. “No, ma’am. Not at all. That’s not what I meant.”

        The tension in the room was nearly palpable. For every moment that Miranda simply stared at the blubbering intern brought everyone in the room closer to the edge of their seats. It was as though they were waiting for the verdict of a long, drawn-out court case wherein the Dragon was the judge, and the nameless intern was the defendant that hadn’t stood a chance.  

        Although, with her clearly distressed little girl sniffling profusely into the crook of her neck, it was hard for Miranda to focus on much of anything else.

        She couldn’t deal with this right now.

        She had to take care of Andy first.

        Her children always came first.

        And so, it was only with that in mind that she was able to put her anger to the side.

        “Very well.” The editor said in a clipped tone. “I suppose mistakes do happen.”

        Off to the side, Nigel and Emily, Miranda’s senior assistant, as well as just about everyone else in the room couldn’t find it in themselves to hide their disbelief. Hell must have frozen over as Miranda went on.

        “You’re free to go to lunch.” She said, “However, I expect you to replace the order you so wonderfully made a mess of upon your return. You are to be back in no less than half an hour.”

        The intern gasped as she swallowed her tears. Astounded, she cried, “ _ThankyouThankyouThankyou, Ms.Priestly.”_

        Unmoved and completely indifferent, the editor turned away from the girl, effectively dismissing her while having a peek at her wrist watch. “Twenty-nine minutes and thirty-two seconds remaining.” Miranda threw over her shoulder.

        The girl raced from the room as if she were afraid the editor would change her mind.

 

        º

 

         It took a matter of moments to get Andrea away from the chaotic scene to a quieter setting.

        Miranda had made her way to the cleanest washroom in the building which was (of course) situated on the same floor as her very own office. It was expectedly tasteful and spacious, too. Although, it was meant for a single person’s use at a time –and that person was her and her alone. No one else dared to be in here other than the person assigned to clean it, yet Miranda had still locked the door behind her on their way in.

Her toddler shivered intensely in her arms as she placed Andy’s bag on one end of the broad washroom counter.

 _“Mommy…?”_ Came another raspy whimper from Andy as she held her mother tightly with little balled fists.

Given what just happened, Miranda could easily tell that her little girl was now emotionally and physically exhausted. Plus, Andy always tended to get especially clingy when she was tired. The toddler’s breakdown was evidently taking its toll.

“Hush now, darling. You’re okay.” Miranda said as she sat the toddler on the counter next to the diaper bag. Then, the editor pulled antibacterial wipes from the bag and quickly wiped out the built-in basin. She rinsed inside the sink before closing off the drain and filling it with warm water.

“Cold, Mama.” Andy looked especially haggard as her little thumb slipped in her mouth for comfort.

“I know, darling.” Miranda held Andy close to her, brushing her dark bangs from her forehead and pulling the little girl’s finger from her mouth. “Mummy’s here. She’ll take care of it,” she said as she began to remove all of Andy’s wet and ruined, coffee-stained clothes.  

First, she removed the girl’s knitted beanie. Next to be discarded was her mittens, and soon enough, there was a small heap of clothing the toddler wouldn’t ever wear again off to the side of the counter. Once Andy was down to her pull-up and the sink was sufficiently filled, Miranda turned the faucet off.

To the editor’s amusement, Andy was now having a difficult time keeping her eyes open. Her little head nodded off in one direction every few seconds as she struggled to stay awake.

“Has my baby had a long day?” The woman smiled in question while testing the temperature of the water.

Andy could only manage a tiny mewl in response.

“Alright, come here.” She lifted the tired toddler to stand on the counter. And after finally peeling off Andy’s wet pull-up, she lowered her little one into the sink.

The basin was rather large, and Andy was slightly smaller than the average child her age, so it worked. The situation was far from ideal according to Miranda’s standards, but it would have to do for now. So, she grabbed a small washcloth and soap from the diaper bag and gently started to wash away the stickiness of coffee from her toddler’s short limbs. Working over the girl’s tummy and behind her ears, Miranda was sure to be gentle as she looked for any burns across Andrea’s pale skin. The editor was beyond glad that she hadn’t found any.

She simply couldn’t afford to go to prison at this point in her life.

“Stay with me, darling.” Miranda lifted her daughter’s chin to get beneath her neck. “We’re almost done. Can you sing the alphabet for Mummy?” She prodded in a soft voice.

She wasn’t exactly against Andy falling asleep. After all, she had intended on putting her down for a nap either way. However, given the circumstances, Miranda knew if Andrea fell asleep now it wouldn’t make it easy on her to get the toddler dressed again.

“Come on, now.” She tried again, “What have we learned?” The editor then sang in a way that she knew Andrea always found pleasure in. Her voice was light and playful as she caroled, “ _A-B-C-D-E-F-G—”._ It was a sound specifically for the privileged people in Miranda’s life.

Big brown eyes stared drowsily up at Miranda. Barely stifling a yawn, Andy managed a half smile and joined in on the song. “— _H-I-J-K-LMNOP-”_

“There’s that beautiful voice,” Miranda encouraged as she couldn’t help her quiet laughter. Because as expected, whenever Andy got to the _LMNOP_ part, it always came out as _AH-LAL-MAN-OH-PEE_. All of the little girl’s consonants would jumble into one indistinct sound.

Stressed as she was, it genuinely amused Miranda. She took great delight in simple moments like these and she refused to allow the demanding nature of her work to rob her of these priceless times.

By the time they got to the letter ‘V’ Andy was done for. She stopped singing midway to rub a pair of wet fists at her eyes as she declared, “Night-night please, Mommy?”

And conveniently enough, Miranda was just about to unplug the drain.

Several moments later, Andrea was clean, toasty and properly snuggled into the warmth of her mother’s embrace. Miranda had dressed her in a simple, long-sleeved, lavender onesie with a pair of cream-colored leg warmers and a cream-colored poncho to match. It had a hood with little ears on top and when slipped over the toddler’s head, Miranda was completely unashamed to say that she felt she had the most adorable little girl in all of America.

 

º

 

With Andrea draped over her shoulder, Miranda fastened the snap of the diaper bag and they left the washroom.

People were still milling about occupied with one task or another, but she had no trouble navigating the office crowd as people were sure to avoid her like fish in a pond with a shark. She zipped pass her office as it was nowhere near equipped for a toddler, especially now since it was more of a mess than it’s ever been. Busy days such as today hadn’t quite allowed for her to be as tidy as she’d like. Regardless, there was a little lounge a few spaces down from her office that she had reserved just for a time like this.

“Leave,” Miranda said to the sole occupant of the lounge once she entered.

The young man who had been wiping down the glass of the windows in the room immediately quit his task and left without question. The editor then closed the door behind him to appraise the open space.

The lounge was full of light. The walls were a pale yellow and in the middle of the carpeted floor was an L-shaped couch. A flat-screen tv hung off the face of one of the walls, and a miniature table with two tiny chairs tucked into it was situated in one corner of the room.

Miranda easily placed Andy’s bag on the couch before opening a closet door off to the side of the sofa. From it she pulled out a rolled-up nap-mat that had been placed on the highest shelf.  

She had a bit of a tough time opening the mat without waking her sleeping daughter. But eventually, she got it to unravel and placed it at the center of the floor, just in front of the couch. Carefully, she laid Andy down on the polka-dot mat. After, Miranda had retrieved two pillows from the closet and grabbed Andrea’s blanket from her bag. She surrounded her daughter with the pillows and draped the soft blanket over her sleeping frame. Andy had a tendency to suck her thumb as she slept and Miranda was not a fan of that fact. So, as a final thought she slipped a pacifier in the toddler’s mouth and her daughter took to it immediately. With a few quiet snuffles the baby brunette scrunched her little legs into her chest before sighing and falling deeper into sleep.

Miranda herself took a deep breath, exhaling long and hard as she stepped back from the layout while combing her fingers through her full head of silver hair.

She needed a vacation, she thought.

The winter holidays had come and went far too soon and now she was back to juggling both work and life as a single mother. Some days –if she was lucky– being Miranda Priestly was just hard. But most days…most days it was unforgivingly _grueling_.

At thirty-seven, Andy came completely unexpected and unplanned by Miranda.

Of course, nobody believed her when she’d said that both Andrea’s father and the twins’ father were one and the same; especially not Stephen, her first husband. He hadn’t believed Andrea to be his while she was pregnant, and he especially hadn’t believed her after Andrea was born. Never mind the fact that her little girl was an exact replica of her ex-husband’s mother; he never acknowledged Andrea as his.

Now, Miranda always thought her ex-mother-in-law to be more of a witch than a person (they’ve never had a good relationship), but she couldn’t deny that the unpleasant woman was exceptionally beautiful in her youth. Her baby’s dark-brown eyes, raven hair and ivory skin all came from her paternal grandmother. Heaven knows Andy’s rosy cheeks, dimpled grin and full pink lips certainly hadn’t come from her. She hadn’t expected anyone else to see it, but Miranda was amazed at how Stephen himself couldn’t make the connection.

The editor wouldn’t admit this to anyone dead or alive, but her darling daughter was undoubtedly the result of a drunken tryst.

Miranda, though she’s come to despise her ex-husband for quite a few reasons, couldn’t say that she regretted the night she’d shared with Stephen. She’d had a vulnerable moment and work was stressful (as usual), and Stephen was _familiar_. He knew what she liked from what she dared not have anyone do to her, and that one night of giving into old habits left her with something she never thought she’d experience again.

Truthfully, it scared her at first –the thought of going through it all over again. And alone this time. The midnight feedings, the soreness that came with lactating, possibly having to endure post-partum depression, the prospect of having twins again – or worse, _triplets_ – all of it terrified her.

And then Hunter came along.

She’d been in her first trimester when she met Hunter, a serious love interest seemingly flung from outer space. At the time, she herself was still oblivious to her own state. And to both their surprise, after they each found out she was pregnant, he decided to stick around and…she’d let him.

They got married and were happily so…until they weren’t. Or at least, until Miranda felt smothered. The first time she gave him the papers, he refused to sign. The sixth time around, a time where she made it clear that the only reason she came home was for the sake of her girls was when he gave up trying to be with someone who wouldn’t have him.

He wasn’t clueless; he knew what people said about him. They’d claimed that he must have been blind, deaf and dumb to have willingly committed himself to being with Miranda. But what others hadn’t understood was he’d seen her in a way that they never could.

Yes, Hunter was the one to hold her hand as she yelled every profanity known to man at every nurse and doctor in the delivery room while she was in labor. And yes, he was completely aware of the extensive list of people Miranda has brought to tears over one trivial matter or another.

But he’d also been there while Miranda was heavily pregnant, immersed in a bath as she sang sweetly to her unborn child. And he was there while she rocked her youngest to sleep at night with a sleepy lovestruck smile on her face.

And it was only with time that he’d come to find out one thing if nothing else: the ‘devil’ was not incapable of unconditional love and kindness. She merely only had it for the ones she bore.

Anyhow; the pregnancy, Miranda’s second marriage, the divorce - all of this took place under the scrutiny of the media.

_Married, Divorced and Married Again!_

**_We’ve Got A Live One Folks!_ ** _\- Fashion mogul Miranda Priestly reels another poor soul to the alter!_

 **_Savage, Sophisticated and Severely Knocked Up!_ ** _– But is Hunter Adley, Priestley’s new beau, really the father?_

 **_The Devil’s Shotgun Wedding?!_ ** _– With a bun in the oven we must ask, is it really love???_

The news headlines were messy at best.

After all of it, a tubal ligation was in order and any rare love affairs Miranda had were straightforward and kept a secret. She got what she needed and that was the end of it.

Presently, Miranda desperately craved a bottle of French wine and a fat Cuban cigar.

She hadn’t thought that this afternoon would have turned out the way it did, and it’s been a while since she’s simply indulged herself in either activity. She couldn’t afford to, though, as Andy was still nursing. She was unexpectedly having a far much more challenging time weaning her youngest than she’d had with the twins.

With another glance at her sleeping little one, Miranda made her way across the lounge and drew the curtains to block out some of the light in the room. If this were any other day Andy would have been comfortably at home with the sitter, probably prancing happily in the living room to a nursery rhyme that even Andy couldn’t get the editor to sing along to.

But _nooo_ , Miranda thought mockingly.

One of the sitter’s insipid relatives _had_ to have a heart transplant _now_ of all times, and there would be no one else besides the sitter herself to support them once they left the operating room.

Now, Miranda thought herself to be a reasonable woman…most times…okay, sometimes.

She agreed to have the kids’ driver bring Andy to _Runway_ (accompanied by the sitter of course), and Miranda would have Joe (the girls’ driver) come by the office after he retrieved the twins from school. This way, the sitter was able to tend to her bedridden…cousin? Brother? Uncle? Whatever, Miranda hadn’t cared enough to remember just who it was. Either way, the sitter could be relieved for today and Andy would be able to go home with her older sisters. At sixteen, the twins were certainly mature enough – well, scratch that. Miranda trusted that _Caroline_ was mature enough to look after Andy for a few hours before she could leave work.

It was a foolproof plan.

Just then, someone knocked on the door and shortly after, Miranda’s senior assistant poked her head into the room.

The dragon shot daggers at the redhead for fear of her waking Andy.

Emily winced, “Sorry, Ms.Priestly. It’s just – you’re needed downstairs.”

Miranda slowly made her way to the door and stared at Emily long and hard.

 _Seriously_ , she thought, she wasn’t sure how much more stupidity she could tolerate today.

“I suppose you thought you were bringing me important news,” the editor drawled with barely concealed irritation.

Emily merely swallowed and kept her gaze concentrated on the floor.

“You don’t think I know of the dire situation we’re in? You don’t think my daughter needed me as well?”

A few silent seconds passed.

“That wasn’t a rhetorical question.”

Emily literally flinched, “N-no, Ms.Priestly. Of course she needed you.”

“Right. So why are you here?”

The redhead panicked, “I- umm - I-I don’t – really I…” She was sweating bullets at this point and was on the verge of hyperventilating.

“If you’re going to pass out, please, do it a few feet further away.” The editor told her.

Emily struggled to get her breathing back to normal.

“Are you done?” Miranda sounded bored.

Her subordinate took a deep breath and nodded.

“Good, because you’re going to keep an eye on Andrea for the next few hours.”

 _“What?”_ Emily looked like a fish out of water.

Miranda’s eyebrow rose.

Her assistant fumbled, “I mean, yes! Of course! Kids are my specialty! I love kids! They’re all I ever talk about, I mean, _kids, kids, kids!”_ She sounded silly and entirely unconvincing even to her own ears as she laughed nervously.

All while her boss stared at her like she truly was the fool she felt she was.

“Whatever that was…” the editor shook her head. “Andrea shouldn’t be awake for another hour or so. But when she does wake up she’ll more than likely be hungry.” Miranda explained, “There are two bottles in her bag and you should easily find the portable warmer as well. Everything you need to change her is in her bag. If she sneezes, bless her. If she gets bored, you are to entertain her. She has a stuffed rabbit that she clings to religiously,” Miranda pointed at the purple stuffed animal whose head was poking from Andy’s bag. “So, if she gets fussy, it’s likely that she wants him. Yes, _him_. If that doesn’t work, there are more toys at the bottom of the closet over there and I give you full permission to make use of the television if you feel the need to. It is programmed specifically to show content for children, but Andy has a preference for a cartoon by the name of _Peppa Pig_. I don’t encourage her thumb-sucking. She has pacifiers, so be sure that she uses them.” Miranda paused, “I don’t feel that it’s necessary for me to say this, but you may not be as bright as I believe you to be, so I’ll say it anyway. If anything happens to my daughter under your watch, I’ll beat you senseless with the only expensive item you own. I can assure you that red bottoms would take on an entirely different meaning if it comes to that.”  

It was far too much information for a wide-eyed Emily to process all at once. But when the editor asked if she’d made herself clear, she barely managed a frantic nod of the head.

The redhead was too lost for words and she hadn’t known whether or not to feel relieved when Miranda left the lounge soon after.

Emily was left staring in horror at the sleeping toddler.

She had no experience with kids whatsoever and she was certain she was bound to fuck this up.

Miranda’s final words lingered in her head, sending an unpleasant trail of goosebumps all along her arms.

Whipping her phone from her pocket the redhead quickly looked up the return policy for _Christian Louboutins_.

 

º

 

        One floor down, the studio was in the same disarray Miranda had left it in.

        The editor moved like a bullet fresh, fast and hot from the barrel of a pistol. Her heels clicked furiously across the floor. She’d had a single objective in mind as she swept past groups of people and finally spotted her target standing by a cluster of wired mannequins.

        “Ms.Priestly!” The intern from earlier wore a beaming smile on her face as the editor approached. “I came back early,” she chirped as she held a fresh tray of coffees in her hand.

        Miranda ignored the intern entirely.

It all happened in a flash.

The editor snatched a full water bottle from a nearby table and a second later, with a single flick of her wrist, the intern was soaked - sopping wet from head to toe.

The girl’s jaw hit the floor in shock as she made a sound that was some combination of a high-pitched shriek and a deep gasp.

Miranda hadn’t known a human could make such a sound. But in case that wasn’t enough, the editor took the half-full cup of iced coffee sitting in the tray, uncapped it, and poured the remainder of its contents directly down the intern’s face.

        Once the initial shock had washed over the intern’s now quivering frame, she started sobbing hysterically where she stood. She was mortified and felt like the world’s greatest fool for thinking that her earlier actions had been forgiven.

        “Now imagine how that must have made a one-year old feel.” Miranda told the girl while nonchalantly reaching for the only dry cup of hot coffee left (marked decaf, of course) and took a sip of it. The woman closed her eyes as she savored the flavor.

        The group of models standing nearby were dumbstruck. Some were in disbelief and some felt sympathetic towards the poor girl. Others were amused by the situation, while the remainder felt fearful of possibly ever getting on the woman’s bad side.

        “You had better be glad that you’re shivering, because if you had scalded my child – if I had found a single burn or blister on my daughter’s skin, you’d be in a far different position right now.” The Devil hissed, “You’re fired. But I suppose you already knew that. Now leave.”

        The nanny who apparently decided to stick around until Miranda formally dismissed her had watched the entire ordeal in amazement.

        “You’re fired too.” Miranda declared. “Somebody clean this mess up,” she said without a backwards glance as she left the scene.    

 

º


	2. Two

º

 

She felt light, like a feather floating freely in the current of warm winds.

Warmth encompassed her from the crown of her head to her little wiggling toes. The sound of silence was soothing, and whatever she’d been laying atop was incredibly soft as she repeatedly rubbed her cheek against it. Mama’s smell lingered in the air and the familiarity of it brought her to burrow deeper into the soft material beneath her.

In this very moment, Andy was in a state of total bliss.

Her contentment was short-lived, however, as she came closer and closer to consciousness. Her face scrunched in displeasure as she slowly sat upright and came to the upsetting realization that she was wet.

She scanned her surroundings through one eye as she slowly rubbed the next. And if her wet diaper wasn’t enough to unsettle her, the fact that she was in an unfamiliar setting and Mommy was nowhere in sight made alarm bells go off in the toddler’s head.

Her lip trembled slightly.

 _Where was Mommy?_  

Then, a quiet gasp from one corner of the room caught her attention.

Sitting on the end piece of a couch, not too far from her, was a woman.

 _“God,_ I thought you were going to be out for much longer than _that.”_  The woman had mumbled far too low and fast to be understood.

But then she cleared her throat, “Uhmm. H-hi there…kid.”

The toddler saw that the lady had light blue eyes and fiery orange hair, much like that of her older sisters.

“Okay, so – I’m Emily.” The woman introduced herself as she slowly came forward and crouched down on the floor, smiling at her. Although, to Andy, it kinda looked like the woman wanted to cry. “You’ve seen me before, haven’t you? Your mom left you here to stay with me for a little while. She’s really busy right now, but I’m sure she’ll be back as soon as she can.”

The toddler looked confused for a moment as only one thing registered with her little, addled brain. She pointed at the woman in question. “Mommy’s friend?” Her tiny voice came out raspy and unsure.

“Uhhh…yeah.” Emily nodded, “Sure, we’ll go with that.”

Just then Andy’s tummy grumbled. It sounded like a small crackle of thunder coming from her stomach.

“Right!” The lady jumped up suddenly. “Your mom said I should give you a bottle when you woke up, soo...”

The little brunette watched silently as the woman moved to rummage through her diaper bag.

She was muttering to herself as she went through the girl’s stuff. “Let’s see. What have we got here…diaper rash ointment, hand sanitizer, lotion, clothes, more clothes… _aaanndd_ \- ah! Here they are.”

Andy’s eyes lit up at the sight of two full bottles of milk.

Unsteadily, she brought herself to her feet and toddled towards her Mommy’s friend. “Yes, please.” The toddler said, making grabby hands as she immediately spotted her toy rabbit and pulled him from the growing pile of things on the couch.

 

“One second, kid. I’ve got to warm it first…I think.” The woman bit her lip. “I think your mom said something about a – _yes_. Here it is.” Emily pulled the portable warmer from the bag. “Okay, now. How do you use this thing?”

It took her a while to figure it all out and by the time she did, Emily was ready to pull her hair out.

But it’s fine, she told herself.

 _It’s okay_.

One of the bottles were now sitting in water in the portable warmer and even after spending well over half an hour in her care, she hasn’t broken her boss’ kid yet.

Emily felt like she was doing quite alright for someone whose last experience with a toddler was when she herself was still in pre-school.

Only, the redhead’s confidence was shot dead the moment Andrea started whimpering beside her.

“Oh, _no-no-no-no_.” The woman begged, “God, _please_ no.” Emily looked at the toddler in panic and confusion as she watched Andy squirm in discomfort. “What is it? What’s wrong, kid?” Then, the woman noticed the little girl grabbing at her distended pull-up.

It took a few seconds…

And then a few more seconds…

And then it finally clicked.

“Oh.” Recognition dawned on the redhead. “ _Shit_.”

º º º

 “I love my job, I love my job, _I love my job_.”

It was a mantra that she sung every time she found herself in a trying situation while working for Miranda Priestly.

But _this_ – this was something different altogether. _This_ was nowhere at all in her job description. _This –_ was something that Emily Charlton had absolutely _no. idea. how. to do_.

She sniffled as a single tear rolled down her cheek, “I love my job.”

º º º

Andrea was staring up at Emily with innocent eyes as she was splayed out on her back like a baby starfish, naked from the waist down. She grabbed at her small feet as she watched Emily fumble with her wet pull-up. The woman tried to roll it up in a way that stuck, but in the end the diaper turned out as some poor attempt at origami.

Patiently waiting for the lady to put her in a new pull-up, Andy let go of one of her feet and her thumb habitually slipped into her mouth. She was completely unaware of her pacifier that slipped beneath the couch.

“ _Ughh_.” Emily groaned in frustration, “Come on kid, you’ve got to help me out here. What am I supposed to do? Do I use this or this first?” The redhead weighed two items in her hands. First, she showed Andy a small jar of petroleum jelly. Then she showed her a bottle of powder.

Andy looked blankly at her.

“Okay then. Google it is…”

º º º

“So, parents.com says to use wipes first.” Emily started to read aloud from her phone. “ _Always wipe your baby from front to back to avoid infection. If the area is red or enflamed, soothe it with ointment.”_ She went to take a peek at Andy’s naked bits only to find that the toddler was already a step ahead of her.

“ _Hey,”_ Emily frowned as she caught Andy patting her va-jay-jay with a fresh wipe in a poor attempt to wipe it clean. She gently pried the wipe from the toddler’s hand. “That’s cheating. Where’d you even get this from? Do you not trust me? Because I – I can _do_ this, okay. I just need a minute.” She frowned at her phone, “Just – one minute. I’ll figure this out.”

º º º

“There. All done.”

Mommy’s friend was smiling at her (a little more genuinely this time) as she helped her stand up. Andy looked down at her crooked pull up and hadn’t thought anything of the fact that it was on backwards. She was just glad that she wasn’t wet anymore. But more importantly, she really needed to find Mommy.  

This lady knew her Mommy, so she must know where she was.

        She’d have her take her to her, she thought. But just as the lady was refastening the snaps of her onesie, Andy’s tummy made more angry noises. It was a little scary this time because it reminded her a lot of moments where Mommy would yell at Cassy for being bad.

 _Okay_ , she thought while looking at her rabbit who’d laid beside her throughout the entire diaper-changing ordeal. _Bottle first, then we’ll ask the nice lady to take us to Mommy._

  º º º

“Okay, here you go. One bottle of milk for – ah! _Shit!”_

Andrea was slightly startled when the woman nearly dropped her food.

“ _Hot_.” The lady bit her lip while frantically flapping her hand back and forth. “Really, really hot,” she cried. “Okay, so I’m just gonna’ give you the other one instead and we’ll just let this one cool off. What we’re _not_ gonna do, though, is tell your Mom. Okay?”

With the bottle being waved in her face Andy was incapable of thinking straight. She nodded mindlessly to whatever the woman was saying and reached with eager little outstretched hands for her cold bottle of milk. Halfway through guzzling down her food, Andy looked towards the woman watching her intently. She suddenly stopped, yanking the nipple of the bottle from her mouth. With a sweet milky smile, she extended her little arm towards Emily, bottle in hand.

Emily grimaced and cleared her throat, “No thanks, kid. I’m on a strict diet and it surely doesn’t include – _that_.”

Andy shrugged (a behavior she picked up from her sisters, no doubt) as if to say: _well, at least I offered._

Seriously. The lady didn’t know what she was missing out on.

Mommy’s milk was the best.

 

º

 

_1.5 hours later_

Emily needed to pee.

Andrea and her little stuffed rabbit were currently cozy and content on the couch as they watched cartoons on the large TV posted on the lounge wall. From the moment the toddler had finished her bottle Emily has had the world’s most difficult time keeping the little girl distracted. Emily pulled the toys that Miranda had mentioned from the closet and hoped that it would buy her enough time before Andy asked for her mother again.

Children could be persistent, Emily found out.

But if this would be the only challenge she faced so far with the toddler, she couldn’t complain all that much. More than anything, she was just glad she hadn’t managed to blow up her boss’ kid.

Okay, so _yeah,_ the bottle warmer gave her a run for her money. And sure, she’ll admit that the whole diaper-changing thing wasn’t a walk in the park (she also may have used far too much powder than necessary) but – _But!_ The important thing was this:

The baby was still alive.

That alone made her feel like she was deserving of a raise.

Emily even got cocky to the point of thinking that the whole parenting thing wasn’t as hard as a lot of people made it seem. Then again, Andrea was a pretty easy-going toddler. Once the redhead got over her initial fear of the situation and came to terms with the task at hand, she’d come to see that Andy was actually kind of sweet.

Really sweet, actually.

So sweet that at some point it was kind of hard for Emily to believe that she was Miranda’s child.

For a moment, Emily thought she might actually consider having one of these at some point.

A baby, she meant.

A baby that she could dress-up in high-end brands and flaunt at the side of her hip to make other mothers _wish_ their kid could be as fabulous. A baby that she could pass down her effective dietary habits to. She could also sign them up for pageants and – and TV commercials! _Now that’s something I could actually profit from,_ she thought.

Of course, she wouldn’t teach the kid about her H2Only diet until they were a little bit older than Andy was. She’d probably have to do that breastfeeding thing at first, too, she thought. But then…what if her boobs dropped? And then she thought of walking around leaking all the time, not being able to get shit-faced on holidays– and… _fuck_. 

Her eyes widened in horror at the affect Andrea was having on her.

“Get a grip, Charlton.” The woman said firmly to herself.

No amount of baby fever would get her to commit to _that_ nightmare.

 

Anyway, all was fine…until Emily felt the intense need to use the bathroom.

She and Andy were in the middle of coloring the page of a Disney book (the redhead realized that coloring outside the lines was a major pet peeve of hers) when the urge to pee had hit her. She usually didn’t need to use the bathroom until she was free to go on her break, but her ‘lunch’ hour had gone by half an hour ago and Miranda still hadn’t come back yet.

º º º

“Serena, I need you to watch the kid for a sec.”

“What?” Serena, her co-worker, was busily moving about her workspace. “What kid?”

“Miranda’s kid. Here.” She gently guided the little girl into the makeshift cubicle.

Serena stared at the toddler.

“Serena, come on! Just for a few seconds.” Emily pleaded. “I really need to use the bathroom.”

“Alright, fine.” The blonde quickly cleared her desk chair of a stack of papers. “Sit her there.”

The toddler was holding her rabbit under one arm and a single Graham Cracker in her free hand. She was lost on what was going on until Emily stooped to her level. “Andrea, this here is Serena. She’s a friend of mine and you’re going to hang out with her for a couple minutes. Okay, kid? I’ll be right back for you.” The redhead petted her head as if she were a puppy and took off shortly after. 

 

º

 

The moment Andy was left with this other lady, her patience wore out.

The woman with the yellow hair seemed nice enough, but Andy didn’t care for the company of strangers right now.

She needed to find Mommy and she needed to find her now.

So, the moment the woman’s back was turned, she scooted her little bum forward in the chair and slid down to the floor. Her half-bitten cracker fell in the process, but she kept on going. Going where? She wasn’t sure yet.

She felt like an ant in a jungle while weaving through the seemingly infinite office space.

At some point, she’d seen a herd of people exit the mouth of an elevator and brightened up at the possibility that Miranda would be somewhere in the mix of people. Her short legs took off in the direction of the elevator.

“Come, Bunny!” She exclaimed while miraculously going unnoticed by everyone onboard.

 

º

 

 “Fuck!” Serena exclaimed mid phone call once she’d turned to an empty office chair.

Just then, Emily banked around the corridor looking somewhat refreshed. “Hey, even I know you’re not supposed to swear in front of the kid.” She joked but came to a complete stop at the sight of her panicked colleague. Her heart was suddenly in her throat now.

“Serena…where’s the kid?”

“I swear she was right there!”

“Serena, you lost Miranda’s kid?” Emily started hyperventilating again. She had to take a seat. “Fuck!” She looked around aimlessly then stomped the floor. _“Fuck!”_

Everyone else in the office was startled by her outbursts, staring at the hysterical woman.

“ _Okay-okay-okay-okay.”_ Serena tried to be the voice of reason. “Calm down, she couldn’t have gone far. She’s got really short legs and she’s a baby so–”

“Exactly! She’s a baby!” Emily exclaimed, “But not just any baby, Serena. _Miranda’s_ baby! Do you know that Miranda just _drowned_ that trainee in coffee for what she did to the kid? And that was an accident! Look, I don’t want to get mauled with my own shoes, Serena. I can’t even return them! _I_ _can’t. return them!”_

“Hey!” The blonde yelled. “Get your shit together. The more time you spend here panicking, the less time you have to find the baby.”

The redhead seemed baffled, “Wait, you mean you’re not going to help me?”

Serena stared at her, “I’m swamped with work right now, Em. I’ve got at least five people on hold as we speak.”

“But you’re the one that lost her!”

“And you’re going to find her!”

 

Emily doesn’t find her.

 

º

 

She’d been looking for _hours_ now.  

Okay, not really.

But, for Andy being as young as she was, the toddler hadn’t fully grasped the concept of time yet. So, all she knew was _hours_ meant a really, really, long time. And it sure felt like a _really_ long time has passed since she last saw her mother. Like, three thousand naps long, or something.

In Andrea’s line of sight was a cluster of legs and feet as she rode the elevator to find Miranda. People spoke loudly over her, so caught up in their assignments and office gossip that they hadn’t noticed the toddler in the mix of the crowd. She felt suffocated. Andy held her plush rabbit tightly as her anxiety reached a whole new level. She only felt slightly relieved when people poured out of the elevator as it had reached the lobby with a quiet _ding_.

The little girl sucked at her thumb intensely.

If she’d thought the elevator was crowded, the lobby was a different situation altogether. Everyone looked like giants towering over her in their haste. She nearly lost her grip on Bunny when a man rushed by her so that he could catch the elevator before its doors had closed.

And then, to her absolute horror, Andy felt the ground start to quake beneath her feet.

A deep rumbling sound echoed in the wide space, frightening the toddler to her little core. A few men were pushing two heavy-duty trolleys across the main floor. The trolleys were piled high with boxes held together by clear wrapping paper and Andy was forced to back up in fear of being run over.

She started to whimper the moment she realized she was wet again. Mommy was usually always there when she woke up from a nap to cuddle her until she felt wide awake. So where was she now? Her whimpering soon turned to mumbling, no, _pleading_ as her tears began to soak the fabric of her stuffed rabbit. “ _No-no-no_ ,” she mumbled in fear as the rush of people around her became a blur of colors. And then she fell, flat on her bum in her effort to back away from the commotion.  A rush of breath left her little body in a single gasp.

Shock was the first thing to register. Next, she saw Bunny’s limp body lying prone across the floor.

The roaring cry that left Andy was more than enough to gather an audience.

Hey eyes got red as they filled with fat, heavy tears that rushed down her cherry-red cheeks. _“Maah-maa!”_ Andrea balled in her misery.

“Hey, who’s kid is this?” Came the voice of a concerned stranger.

“Someone call security,” said yet another stranger.

The crowd of people surrounding her became even harder to decipher as she started coughing profusely. She tried to rub the tears from her puffy eyes.

Her head swam.

Today really was not the toddler’s day.

“Wait, isn’t that Miranda Priestly’s daughter?”

Someone crouched down in front of her, “Oh my god, it is! It’s Andrea Priestly!”

The sound of her mother’s name got Andy’s attention, but the person kneeling before her made her feel uneasy. They were too loud and too close for comfort. The toddler recoiled. She covered her eyes and desperately tried to drown out the sound of her audience with her loud cries.  

It was all too much for her to deal with at this point. She didn’t know where Mommy was, Bunny got hurt, and a bunch of strangers had her cornered while she cried her heart out on the cold, hard floor. All in a wet diaper.

“Woah!” Somebody yelled, “Get out of the way! Are you deaf? _Move!”_

The yelling caused Andrea’s cry to fall flat.

She uncovered her eyes and brushed her red, runny nose. And not a minute later consolation had come in the form of familiar arms scooping her up from off the ground.

“Squirt! What are you doing down here all by yourself? Where’s Mom?”

Andrea wrapped her little arms tightly around her sister’s neck.

Cassidy Priestly, still in her school uniform, was standing in the midst of the throng of people with a worse-for-wear Andy attached to her hip.

“Hey, it’s okay.” Cassidy rubbed her little sister’s back. “It’s okay, Squirt. I’ve got you.”

“L-lost M-mm-ommy, Cassy,” the little girl hiccupped.

“Did you now?” Cassidy brushed her wet cheeks. “Well, I’m sure I know where to find her.”

“You find Mommy?” Andrea seemed like she didn’t think it were possible.

“Pinky promise,” Cassidy told her. She swiped Andy’s rabbit from the floor then she pulled a packet of gummy worms from her skirt pocket. “Carrie’s actually with Mom right now. It’ll be okay, Squirt. Here,” She gave Andy a pink and blue sugar-coated worm. Sniffling, the little girl took a kitten lick of the piece of candy. “Alright now, munch on that. I swear we’ll get there before you’re even done.”

 

º

 

_\- Several Floors Above -_

“Caroline, I’m trusting you to keep an eye on your sister. She’s not to go anywhere near the stove. Make sure she remains far away from any sharp objects and if she tries to use the chandelier as a swing again, you have my explicit permission to lock her in the coat closet until I make it home.” Miranda instructed her eldest daughter. “I also need you to watch Andrea. You’ll have to feed her and give her a bath.” She sighed, “I should be done with work in time to put her to bed. Do you think you can manage that?”

They were in the studio stood off to the side, away from most of the clamor to have some bit of privacy.

 “Of course, Mom.” Caroline told her mother, “I know that now is a really busy time for you.” She waved her hand to indicate the hustle and bustle around them. “So, I’ll help in any way I can.”

“Thank you, dear.” The editor said, feeling both appreciative and proud of the way Caroline was maturing. “Now, tell me. How was school?”

“Okay, I suppose.” The teen thought for a second, “I might need a new bow for my cello. I seemed to have misplaced the original one. But nothing else particularly exciting happened today,” she said. “Although, I did have to wait a while for Cassidy to be released from detention.” She hummed then, “I wonder what’s taking her so long. She was just a minute behind me.”

As if summoned by her name alone, her twin sister entered the room.

“Hello, hello!” Cassidy came in with a bright smile, Andy hanging from her hip. “Lookie who I’ve got,” the teen sang.

“You were in _detention?”_ Miranda eyed her daughter sharply.

“Huh?” Cassidy was like a deer caught in headlights as she gave her mother the worst poker-face ever. Then she turned to Caroline, “You snitch! You said you wouldn’t tell.”

Caroline shrugged nonchalantly at her twin.

And before Miranda could seriously reprimand Cassidy, her youngest had let out a long, morose whine that clearly told of her unhappiness. At the sight of her mother Andy had immediately teared up again.

But the editor was quick to take the toddler who’d wordlessly reached out for her. Then the woman frowned in further disapproval. “Cassidy, what have I told you about giving your sister sweets?” Miranda eyed the small, colorful worm her little one had been strangling with her tiny, tightly closed fist. There was glittering sugar all around Andrea’s mouth, too.

“But I had a reason this time!” Cassidy exclaimed as she crossed her arms. “She was upset.”

“Oh?” Miranda seemed puzzled by Andy’s bad mood. “Did you not have a good nap, darling?” She asked, though she hadn’t gotten a response from the toddler who only curled further into her. She looked up to Cassidy, her voice taking on a harsher tone as she wondered, “What was the problem? Where is Emily?”

Cassidy seemed confused at the mention of her mother’s assistant – just as Emily herself, coincidentally, entered the studio.

The haggard woman wore a grave, ashen expression. But the exact moment she spotted her boss with her children – all _three_ of her children – only then did a little color began to return to her face. She was lucky she’d caught the tail of their conversation, too.

“Here I am!” She gave them a wide plastic grin, laughing in her nervousness. “I was just… uuhh…I was just making sure that the girls didn’t have trouble finding you.” She tried to swallow her anxiety. “Yes! They had stopped by the lounge and one of them took the kid – I mean - _Andrea!”_ Her eyes bugged wide open and she turned into an anxious, rambling mess. “One of them, I’m not sure which one because they look so much alike, you know with them being twins and all that. But, one of them took _Andrea_ and were on their way to you so I just wanted to make sure they…were able to – yeah.”

The woman’s shoulders drooped in her exhaustion. She realized now that she’d made a bit of a fool of herself.

Again.

Cassidy was looking at her with a popped eyebrow, about to call her mother’s assistant out for the liar that she was. Yet, the only thing that stopped her from doing just that was the subtle, pleading look in Emily’s eyes, begging her not to tell her mother the truth.

Cassidy sighed. “Right.” She rolled her eyes at the woman and nudged Caroline to play along when their mother looked at them. “I forgot you texted me that you were on this floor.” She told her mother, “I thought you were going to be in your office and I’d passed by the lounge when I hadn’t found you there.”

Caroline cleared her throat, following suit. “Cass, you’re always so forgetful. I told you where I was headed.”

Emily breathed a short sigh of relief as the twins covered for her. Although, she was still tense in her demeanor as Miranda had yet to address her.

The silver-haired woman glared at her assistant in suspicion. She made the woman sweat in her anxiety until she began to quiver.

“Hm.” Miranda raised her chin, looking down at her from the bridge of her nose much like a queen assessing a peasant. Then, “One of the models recently had a mental breakdown of some kind.” She spoke in an unconcerned manner. “She made a mess of one of the makeup stations. Bile and what appears to be bits of celery has covered every inch of the stall. The janitorial staff is short today for some irksome reason or another. Emily, be a doll. Make it sparkle again and be sure to replace all of the ruined products.” Miranda looked away from her assistant to rub small, comforting circles into Andy’s back. “That is all.”   

And, honestly?

At those words and the blatant dismissal from her employer, Emily bit her bottom lip, feeling very much like she herself was on the verge of having a mental breakdown. She fought to conceal it. “Yes, of course.”

 

Once the woman had left the family of four, Caroline joined in on patting Andy’s back, “Are you ready to go home, Muffin? It’s just going to be you, Cassy and I for a while until Mom gets in.”

Andy moaned in displeasure at that. “No, please.” The little girl’s grasp tightened on her mother.

Polite little thing she was. Even in her obviously cranky mood, her little one’s manners were still intact. And while Miranda was used to her youngest’s clingy behavior after she woke up from a nap, she realized that this was something different altogether.

She was slightly worried as she whispered softly to the little brunette. “You don’t want to spend time with your sisters?”

The toddler shook her head in response, “Stay by Mommy.”

Miranda sighed into her baby’s hair.

She really couldn’t catch a break today.

 

º


	3. Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was long overdue. Sorry for the wait :) I hope the length makes up for it.  
> TW- Trigger Warning for mentions of inability to conceive.   
> BTW French isn’t my first language. Don’t come for me :p
> 
> Sorry for any mistakes!

º

 

Lo and behold, Saturday had arrived.

While this hadn’t meant much for Miranda, it was nice to see that as the week flew by, the sun had decided to peak through a ceiling of clouds to provide some measure of warmth to the frozen city of New York.

Not for the first time in the past week Miranda had seriously considered what life would be like if she were to move to the West Coast.

It was a reoccurring thought brought on by an onslaught of ice she’d faced while coming in from out of the cold. And it was particularly bothersome as she could easily have herself and the girls flown out to some prestigious part of California, far away from the nuisances that came with this teeth-chattering season.

Really.

It wouldn’t be hard at all. Especially as images of Andy came to mind, excitedly racing Cassidy through rows of an elaborate vineyard or building towering sandcastles with Caroline on the floury shore of a private beach. She knew that spring would be exceptionally beautiful there and was sure the twins would love to go horseback riding again -experiencing a real summer this year.

It was a pleasant thought, yes, but don’t be mistaken.

If nothing else, Miranda _loved_ dressing for the winter. Most definitely.

Each of her mink coats felt like a warm, expensive hug as it hung from her shoulders. And such iconic pieces paired with her knee-high Manolo boots made for a lethal combination. Whenever the woman stepped out into a shower of snow, heads were sure to turn wherever she went, and with an unshakable confidence she’d bathe in the attention she’s given.

Anyway, never mind all of that.

For her sporadic desire to relocate would remain just that – a desire. Because just as New York could be the starting point of a new ice age, the frequent forest fires reported in California were quite capable of turning the western state into endless miles of ash and soot. Not to mention, the twins would be graduating soon and they each had plans of their own. Caroline would be going to a university out of state and Cassidy would be doing…something. Miranda wasn’t sure. Then again, Cassidy wasn’t sure herself.

Besides, _Runway_ was in New York, and it’d be many years to come before the editor handed over her crown and stepped down from her throne…not even for the sake of a more tolerable climate.

Suffice to say, this week had been the nightmare of all nightmares all because of one disgruntled Mother Nature.

But Miranda (and everyone else below her) were coping.

Sort of.

Okay, _barely_.

Yet, given the amount of overtime everyone has been putting in at work (despite there being plenty left to be done) things were finally starting to fall back on track with the schedule, just in time to meet certain deadlines for fashion week which was in less than three weeks.

This was good.

Only, as of late, without a proper nanny to keep watch of Andy throughout the day, it was becoming quite the challenge for Miranda to find that balance between her life at home as well as her life at work. Earlier in the week, when the last nanny had brought Andrea to Runway, Miranda had the hardest time meeting both Andy’s needs as well as efficiently fulfilling all that her job required.

And that simply wouldn’t do.

Those few days ago, the editor was unable to leave work around the time that she usually did, and Andy was in no way willing to comply with leaving with her sisters –not without Miranda, at least. She’d had to nurse Andrea back to sleep so that she could resume working. And even as she was putting the toddler in her car seat, properly seeing her girls off, Andy, even in her sleep, held onto her mother with a vice-like grip.

Miranda knew her little one wouldn’t have been pleased when she woke up. And honestly? Miranda felt a little guilty for it, but she would’ve been home soon enough, she told herself.

But, really, who was she kidding?

She hadn’t made it home until well after midnight.

And her earlier guilt couldn’t compare to what she felt when Caroline had called her later that evening. Her eldest was in the middle of reading Andrea a bedtime story, desperately trying to get the toddler to go to sleep. But all of the teen’s efforts were seemingly for nothing as Miranda listened to Andrea’s cries in the background, pleading for her to come home. Her little one’s choked sobbing overwhelmed her in the worst way and it was imperative that Miranda took a moment to regain her composure.

After the editor had promptly dismissed the latest nanny for her insolence, Hunter, Miranda’s second husband, had been keeping Andy during the day.

The man led a carefree life; a life without constraints and demanding schedules –quite the opposite of Miranda’s, one could easily tell. And even though he and his ex-wife had become somewhat withdrawn from one another, he still cared very much for her youngest daughter. Not that he hadn’t cared for the twins as well, because he did.

 It was just that…Hunter felt more of a connection with Andrea. He had been there from before the girl was born, and he’d been there, too, when the little girl came into a world to a father that denied her.

So, while Stephen ignored Andrea’s very existence, Hunter was there.

And he would continue to be there, so long as Miranda allowed him.

They’d made arrangements throughout the rest of the week. Miranda would have her driver take her to Hunter’s address (before work) where she left Andy with lipstick-stained cheeks and promises to see her later on. Then, when the twins got out from school, their driver, Joe, would pick them up and soon after collect Andy from Hunter’s.

It was a lot, but it worked.

Until it didn’t.   

One morning, just as Miranda was handing over Andy’s diaper bag Hunter had trapped her in a hug before the woman could turn away. Miranda hadn’t been discomforted by his proximity, but before she could pull away he’d fallen into the old habit of brushing away that little silver curl that always fell to her forehead.

He’d told her she was beautiful.

He’d asked her to take a few minutes, come inside for a second.

He’d leaned in closer, trying for a kiss as she’d denied him.

And, again.

This simply wouldn’t do.

Which was why, by some miracle, Miranda had managed to clear some time in her schedule and reserved a four-hour window period to interview a selection of potential caretakers for her youngest daughter.

“Emily?” Sat behind her desk Miranda called out for her assistant.  

“Yes, Miranda?” Her senior assistant had appeared in the doorway, head slightly bowed.

Of course, Miranda had not wanted strangers in and out of her home, especially with her being as high-profile as she was. So, the interviews would be conducted right here in her office. Emily had been the one to put up an advertisement with all of the specifics Miranda expected of a potential caretaker for Andrea to uphold.

_Must be 25+_

_Professional_

_Punctual_

_Competent_

_Bilingual – Fluent in English & French_

_Non-smoker_

_Non-drinker_

_Without a criminal Record_

_5+ years’ experience in childcare_

_First aid and CPR certifications required_

_Must be able to swim_

_Must have some experience in culinary arts_

_Must be in good health and willing to provide an up-to-date medical report from a certified physician_

_Must show proof of literacy_

_Must be educated on the basics of self-defense_

_Must have a clean, valid drivers’ license & passport_

_Must provide no less than five valid references_

_Must be willing to travel far beyond the country for prolonged periods of time_

_Must know how to navigate small, crowded spaces e.g **elevators**_

_Must be a fan of Peppa Pig_

Again, Miranda thought herself to be a reasonable woman.

But, disregarding whether or not her expectations were rational, she felt she could demand the applicant to have had experience on the moon for how much she’d be paying them an hour.

And if the poor soul had just so happened to tick every box off the editor’s list, a background check would then be in order as well as a trial run; just a few days set aside for whomever she chose so they could spend time with Andrea while under her supervision. After all, it was important that her little one approved of them as well.

Without looking up from the catalogue she’d been idly flipping through at her desk she spoke coolly towards her assistant.

        “Send the first one in.”

 

º º º

 

Moments later a plump thirty-something-year-old woman had stumbled into her office. She’d had a flurry of box-dyed hair sitting atop her head, a heavily freckled face and wind burnt cheeks. From the minute she’d sat down Miranda was struck by her overwhelming perfume which smelled very much like a barrel of overripe lemons. She smiled a coffee-stained smile at the editor and without even starting the interview, already, Miranda was not impressed. 

“I’m really good with kids! Honest!” The barrel of lemons hadn’t seemed to understand the concept of an inside voice as she rambled. “I can cook, I can clean, I can say the alphabet backwards if you want– all of that!” She laughed while the editor kept a straight face. “My mother had ten kids and I’m the third eldest, so I had to help out a lot with my younger siblings growing up!”

 “Hm.” Miranda hummed with a disapproving frown. “And tell me, dear, was your mother a broodmare or were your parents not fortunate enough to afford contraceptives?”

The woman’s thin eyebrows came together in confusion. “C-con-ceptives?” The oblivious woman smiled. “I’m sorry, I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Right.” The editor clasped her hands over her desk. “Emily…send in the next one.”

 

º º º

 

        By the fourth applicant Miranda came to find out that good hygiene and common sense weren’t as common as she’d thought.

Interviewee number five came in the form of a disheveled young woman who’d spent the past ten minutes going on about the many times she’d babysat for her neighbors while growing up. She was the type that spoke frantically with her hands, having a gesture for every word that left her mouth. She went on and on, arms flailing as she told the editor a clearly recited story that Miranda had long ago stopped listening to.

Instead, her gaze was fixated on the smear of bright pink lipstick painted across the woman’s two front teeth. And when that hadn’t been the distraction, Miranda couldn’t help but notice the way the woman’s eyes had been dilated in an obviously unnatural way.

The woman was now beaming at her, “Really. I can change a diaper in a high-speed chase if it came to it.”

Miranda raised a brow.

A moment passed.

“And, pray tell, why do you believe it would ever come to that?”

She wasn’t going to entertain the woman, but her curiosity led her to ask anyway.

Then the woman’s knee started to bounce repetitively. “I dunno, ya know things just happen sometimes.” She shrugged as she bit her bottom lip in a poor effort to suppress a grin.

“ _Emily_.”  

 

º º º

 

        Two hours in and Miranda had had the misfortune of meeting quite a number of people – all of which were either terribly unqualified, mentally unstable or all of the above. In that time, she’d only managed to come across two persons even worth considering. This fact had both exhausted and annoyed the editor beyond words.

        Truly, it was a painful… _mind-numbing_ experience.

However, she desperately needed to find someone to look after Andrea before she left for Paris.

So, she powered through it.

“So, uhh…the baby’s yours, right? Cause, you two look nothing alike to me. I mean, I saw something on this Facebook page, look here, let me show you.”

Miranda stared coolly at the person sat before her.

The man turned his phone screen to her. “Look. Says you adopted her from Germany or something. Is that right?”

 

º º º

 

Emily was startled by the sound of breaking glass.

She’d cautiously poked her head into Miranda’s office to see shards of a broken mirror on the floor. Right in the sea of glass was the fractured screen of a cellphone.

The man who Miranda had been interviewing was knelt on the floor, shocked and devastated over his broken phone. _“What the hell!?”_ He yelled in outrage. _“What’d you do that for!?”_

Sat unphased, Miranda reached to her right for her water bottle.

She took a sip.

She cleared her throat.

She checked the time.

“Emily, have you received the drafts from the marketing department as yet?”

The redhead stood wide-eyed as the man only became more furious at the fact that his anger was of no concern to her boss.

“Um, yes, Ms.Priestly. They were brought up just a minute ago.”

 “Bring them to me.”

Emily left and quickly returned just as the man made a guttural sound of outrage. “Lady! _Look_ at my _phone_!”

Miranda took a heavy manila folder from the redhead. She hummed in thought. “Also, Nigel was supposed to bring–”

“The skirts?” Emily nodded, “They’re right beside my desk.” She pointed to the rack just on the outside of her boss’ office.

“Good. Now please do call security to escort this idiot from the premises before he starts frothing at the mouth.”

 

º º º

 

        At this point, seconds felt like hours and hours felt like a lifetime.

        Miranda was now forced to wonder what it would cost to clone herself. Because if she could be in two places at once she would throw this entire interviewing process to hell. Seriously.

        The world was now sufficiently technologically advanced to make such a thing happen, right?

        _Right?_

She’d lost track of how many failed interviews had went by since the day began.   

“Yeah, so, before we start. I know you’re like – _stupid rich_ – soooo how much does this job pay exactly?”

Miranda hadn’t even bothered to look up to put a face to the nasally voice. 

Slowly, she simply stood and left the room.

 “I’m going out to lunch,” she told her assistant. “Deal with whatever that is sitting in my office. I’ll be back as soon as I’ve procured all of the brain cells I’ve lost in the past few hours.”

Coat swaying as she went to the elevator, Miranda hadn’t bothered to say anything more.

 

 

º º º

       

_An Hour Later_

 “Bloody hell.”

Miranda removed her glasses in frustration. “How many imbeciles left have I yet to meet?”

“Um,” Emily took a look at her iPad. “Two more.”

The editor massaged her temples defeatedly, “How tragic.”

 

º º º

 

 

        If the myth were ever true about there being a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow, Miranda thought this must be what it felt like to find one.

 Within the last hour of conducting interviews, she found herself holding the résumé of all résumés as her eyes scanned the page thoroughly in approval. The editor was in slight disbelief as she’d been expecting another nutjob who’d had no clue of how to spell the word ‘qualification’, let alone them having any to speak of. And yet, according to the sheet of paper she now held, this _Katrina Collins_ seems to have planned her entire life specifically for this moment.

“You mean Christina.”

“Excuse me?”, Miranda looked up at the sound of the final interviewee’s voice.

The blonde woman cleared her throat, clasping her hands in her lap as she tried to square her shoulders. “My name. It’s Christina, Miss.”

Miranda gave the woman an appraising look. She seemed much younger than thirty-four with her bright green eyes and unwavering smile. She was pretty. But did she have what it took to work for Miranda? The editor wasn’t so sure.

Looking away from the woman, she started picking apart her credentials. “I see here that you are fluent in Russian, French and Spanish.”

The woman’s smile grew wider, “And English, obviously.”

Miranda threw her a sharp look and her smile fell a bit. She cleared her throat. “Yes. I can speak all that you’ve listed.”

“Hm. And what of your previous experiences in childcare? What was it like for you?”

The woman hummed in thought. “Well, five years ago I’d been signed with an agency. I stayed with them for four years and beyond that, I’d mostly been doing freelance work. I was the caretaker for a few other celebrity kids, but those gigs were only for a few weeks at a time.” She nodded, “Kids have always been a pleasure for me to work with. But now, I’d prefer something more stable and when I came across the Ad you had up I knew I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.”

Having memorized most of the resume, Miranda put it to the side. “And you know how to properly perform CPR?”

“Yes.” The blonde nodded, “I’d needed to have my CPR and First Aid certificates from then so…” She shrugged with a short laugh, “It’s been a while since I had to help a kid cough up a hotdog but, I’m sure I remember the Heimlich maneuver just fine.”

“And do you have any children of your own?”

The woman’s smile fell into a flat line for the first time since the interview started. But only for a moment as she seemed to shake off whatever she’d been feeling, “No.” She took a deep breath, “ I’m unable to conceive. Hostile uterus. I’ve made peace with it and I am considering adopting at some point.” And there was that smile again.

 There was a small crack in Miranda’s cold demeanor at the woman’s admission. “That is unfortunate,” she said. “However, I think it’s good that you’re considering an alternative.”

Christina nodded kindly, “Lots of kids out there need loving still, so…” She trailed off with a shrug.

“Right. Do you smoke?”

“Nope. Never felt the need to.”

“And do you drink?”

“I’d had a good friend of mine that was killed by a drunk driver and a grandfather who died from alcohol poisoning. So, no. I don’t care too much for drinking.”

“Too much?” Miranda rested her chin in the palm of her hand. “Be more precise.”

The woman readjusted her purse in her lap. “All I’m saying is a glass of wine here and there is enough for me.”

Miranda could understand that. But what she couldn’t wrap her mind around was - “Your criminal record. Care to explain that?”

The blonde looked slightly embarrassed at that. “It’s silly, really.” She fought to hold Miranda’s gaze. “I got a ticket once. I was taking my Nona to her doctor’s appointment and she’s easily triggered by her motion sickness, so…I got pulled over for, and I quote, _“heavy law abiding”_ ”.

Miranda’s eyes narrowed at the other woman. “You mean to tell me the closest you’ve ever come to committing a criminal offence was driving below the speed limit?”

The girl’s cheeks reddened. “I said it was silly. But, yes.”

The editor had a hard time believing her, but seeing as she’d have a background check performed either way, she went on with the assessment. “Despite the fact that we are currently in winter, I need to confirm whether or not you can swim.” Miranda sat back coolly in her seat. “Providing that you are hired, there will come a time where you may need to accompany my family and I on vacation. So, can you swim?”

Christina nodded. “Yes, I can, actually. I’ve been able to swim shortly after I could walk. My grandfather always said to my brother and I that the best way to learn something knew was by jumping in the deep end.” She smiled then, clearly lost in a memory. “Bastard used to throw us in without a warning.”

The editor frowned, “And you agreed with his method of teaching?”

After realizing Miranda’s possible train of thought, the blonde shook her head profusely. “Oh, _no._ Not at all. It was effective, yes. I mean, I’ve convinced myself since I was five that I just might be part fish.” She laughed, then said more seriously. “But I could have learned all the same without nearly drowning… _repetitively_. I’d never do that to a child.”

Miranda seemed pleased to hear that. “And what about culinary experience?”

The blonde sighed. “I’ll be honest and say that I’ve never been the best cook. I don’t know how to put together anything fancy, but I _do_ know how to make some mean pancakes. Or breakfast foods in general, really.”

Then the editor reach for the woman’s resume, giving it another glance. “Well, I see you’re in good health. And it says here that you’ve written a book?”

“Yes,” The woman bit her lip, “It’s uh…it’s about the lives of military kids. My dad was in the military, so I’ve been able to share a lot of personal experience with others through my writing. Some years ago, for the short while that he’d been back home we’d had a break-in. Everyone in the house was asleep and someone tried to rob the house.” She sighed, “Nobody was hurt, but my dad wanted to be sure that my brother and I had some way to protect ourselves while he was away.”

“I assume you’re referring to self-defense?”

“Yes. My dad had me see a professional who was well-versed in mixed martial arts, a friend of his who ran a gym.”

And at that, Miranda couldn’t lie. She was highly impressed.

“I don’t suppose you have copies of your driver’s license and passport, do you?”

“Oh, yes. I do, here they are.” The girl readily pulled the documents from her purse. “And here are all five of my references as well.”

After Miranda had looked over the copies of the woman’s documents and skimmed the references (she’d read them thoroughly later that evening). But first she needed to know, “And you’re willing to travel?”

Christina smiled, “Yes, I am.”

“Beyond America?”

“Absolutely.”

“Very well. One last thing,” Miranda clasped her hands on top of her desk. “What do you know about Peppa Pig?”

“Oh, more than I think I should.” The woman laughed then went on and on about the kids’ show, much to the editor’s surprise. The blonde shrugged, “My niece has me watch it with her all the time.”

And really? Miranda truly couldn’t believe her luck.

She’d just found Andrea’s new Nanny.

 

º

 

        With it being their last semester before graduation, most days, both Caroline and Cassidy were likely busy with something school related.

As the president of student council, Caroline always had her hands full.

Hellbent on making a 4.0 GPA this time around, she was also trying to prepare herself to take the SATs. Frazzled more often than not, the girl still claimed to have nightmares about the previous semester where she’d scored a _measly_ 3.92. Her apprehensions now drove her to push herself as best as she could. Which meant that, in the mornings while she brushed her teeth, one hand held her toothbrush while the other held the spine of her oversized chemistry text. It meant that she fell asleep to the sound of voice recordings she’d made while overlooking her latest physics assignments. And it also meant that she usually felt like she was on the brink of a mental breakdown whenever she failed to complete all of her objectives for the day.

Yet, she refused to say that she _may_ have been running herself through the ground lately with all that she’d had on her plate.

_‘Ugh! You’re such a perfectionist. I wish you’d just relax and act like a real teen for once,’_ Cassidy had told her some weeks ago; and it was strange because her sister was rarely ever cross with her. In fact, it was usually the other way around.

Then again (even though Caroline was reluctant to admit it) her sister had probably had good reason for snapping at her. Cassidy had simply wanted them to spend a night out together with a few friends, but Caroline had insisted that she couldn’t. _‘I’m sorry, Cass, but I can’t. I have this huge paper that’s due in a week and I have tutoring lessons I haven’t planned out yet.’_

_‘But it’s our **birthday**_ , _Caroline!’_

Her sister’s use of her full name had brought her to stop her frantic typing at her laptop. She’d looked up from her chaotic splay of sticky notes and crumpled balls of paper and nearly caved at the look her twin gave her. But – _‘We can always do something tomorrow night, Cass.’_

She’d turned her attention back to her work and Cassidy hadn’t pushed the matter any further. _‘Whatever. You’re unbelievable.’_

Later that evening, Cassidy had come back home with a small broken heart tattoo on her hip and hadn’t spared her twin sister a second glance as she’d made her way to bed.   

They were like polar opposites, those two.

While Caroline raved about elite schools across the country, Cassidy was simply determined to be the most memorable student Wintour High has ever known. She was always seen around campus with her beloved guitar strapped across her chest and a playful swagger in her step. The girl was devoted to her music if nothing else, and while she had no intentions of making a career out of it, she planned to perform a solo at their graduation ceremony.

She hardly stressed herself about exams and deadlines in the way that her sister did. All she knew was that, at the end of their final semester, she was going to have the most iconic photo in the yearbook and an even better quote to go along with it.

 

º º º

 

Caroline was in the middle of putting together a power point presentation for an upcoming student council meeting when Cassidy had popped her head in her sister’s room.

“Hey, nerd!” Her sister plopped down on the bed with Andy in tow. _“Waatcha dooin?”_

Caroline sighed, “Work.”

“What kinda work?”

“School work.”

“Hmm…”

A moment of silence passed.

“What kinda school work?”

Caroline looked away from her laptop in annoyance. “What do you want, Cassidy?”

Plucking at the lint on the quilt of the bed, Cassidy hummed. “Oh, nothing. Just –” She shrugged. “I was just thinking…it’s the weekend, Mom’s at work and we haven’t done anything together in a while…”

“Cass, we see each other every day.”

“Yeah but,” The girl huffed, “When was the last time we’ve really _done_ something together, Care. And _you_ – I barely even see you anymore because you’re always buried under a pile of books. You need to take a break, Care.” She huffed again, “I’m demanding some twin time!”

Caroline sighed, “I can’t right now.”

“Shocker.” Cassidy rolled her eyes. “Well, if you’re not going to do it for me, then do it for Andy.” She squished their baby sister’s cheeks together for emphasis.

The older twin turned to Andy who’d been silently listening in on their conversation as she sucked away at her pacifier. “But then it wouldn’t be ‘twin time’, now would it?”

Cassidy groaned, “That’s not the point. In fact, the three of us should do something together. Oh, I know! We can have Joe take us to see a movie.” The teen ran a hand through Andy’s unruly hair. “The new Wreck It Ralph is out. I think Andy would like it. And then, maybe we could do some shopping after!”

Caroline seemed puzzled. “Wreck it what?”

“Just say yes, Care.”

“No – Cassidy. I already told you –”

“Say yes, Care! Say it!”

“What part of –”

“Just – say – _yes!”_  Cassidy took Andy’s chubby hands into her own and clapped the toddler’s hands together. She chanted, “Just – say – _yes!_ Just – say – _yes!_ Just – say – _yes!”_  

“FINE.” Caroline slammed her laptop shut. “ _Fine_. I’ll go.”

“Yeah you are!” Cassidy exclaimed and in her excitement she attacked Andy with tickling fingers. “You hear that, Squirt? We’re going to the movies!”

Annoyed as she was at first, Caroline couldn’t stop herself from smiling as Andy sought refuge in her lap. The little girl fought to escape Cassidy’s grasp, but once she had, Caroline took her with open arms and affectionately dropped a kiss to the toddler’s forehead.  

 

º

 

For a Saturday afternoon the mall was nowhere near as busy as they thought it would have been.

They’d seen the movie Cassidy suggested, and Caroline had (unsurprisingly) had a hard time following the plot in the beginning. Although, once she’d finally caught on to what the kids’ animation was about, Andy instantly became restless in her lap (as most toddlers would).

The little girl had nibbled on a kernel of popcorn that she took from the small tub Caroline held out for her. She took random sips of apple juice from the juice pouch her sisters had packed away for her for their little outing. Her big brown eyes were glued to the large screen at the head of the theatre but once her juice pouch had gone empty, she started squirming where she sat.

At first, Caroline thought she simply needed a diaper change. But after a trip to the restroom, she saw that her little sister was clean and comfortably dry.

They left the theatre halfway through the film (much to Cassidy’s disappointment); which meant they quickly took to raiding every store in sight.

An hour later, the girls found themselves on the opposite end of the large shopping mall. They were now in the food court with all of their shopping bags splayed across a vacant table. Off to the side, Joe stood patiently waiting for the confirmation that they were ready to leave the mall to return home.

Since the movies, Andy had nearly wandered off multiple times throughout the entire ordeal and at one point Cassidy had even suggested buying one of those leash and harnesses for kids so that they wouldn’t lose the toddler in the mix of their shopping.

“Are you kidding me?” One of Caroline’s eyebrows rose considerably at her twin’s suggestion. “She’s a person –not a dog, Cassidy.  Mom would never–”

“Well, Mom’s not here, now is she?” Cassidy rolled her eyes while adjusting Andy on her hip. “And I never said she was a dog.” The teen shrugged. “Plus, I think the harnesses are pretty cute. I don’t see what the big deal is if it keeps her from getting lost.”

“It’s not necessary,” Caroline told her while rummaging through one of Andy’s shopping bags.

Then Cassidy addressed the toddler herself, “What do you think, Squirt? Carrie’s being unreasonable, isn’t she?” At Andy’s little confused expression, Cassidy tried to simplify things for her with a big fake pout. “Carrie’s being a big, ole meanie.”

And at that the toddler’s confusion turned into a look of disapproval.

Her eyes narrowed at her oldest sister as she pulled her binky from her mouth with a ‘ _pop’._ “Carrie a meanie?” She asked the teen as if daring the girl to confirm what Cassidy had said.

Caroline glared at her twin but sighed when she caught her baby sister’s ‘fiery’ gaze. “No, Muffin. I’m not being a ‘meanie’. Cassidy’s a fibber. Now come here, let me put your new shoes on.”  She reached for the toddler who came easily enough as her disapproval quickly faded away. Caroline shook her head. _Kids._

The teen sat in one of the chairs at the table and quickly fit Andy’s little feet into a new pair of Giuseppe Zanotti sneakers. They were banana printed and Caroline thought that they were the cutest things ever.

Sometime throughout their shopping, they’d found that Andy had lost one foot of her slippers. Neither of them had realized it either until the girl whined in discomfort at stepping in something sticky. So, it was because of that and the toddler’s tendency to wander off that the twins resorted to taking turns carrying the little girl through the rest of the mall. Also, never one to leave their baby sister out of the mix, they’d found themselves in the kids’ section of a number of designer outlets during their shopping spree.

Among Andy’s purchases, Cassidy’s shopping bags consisted of a bunch of band t-shirts and numerous dark, distressed pieces of clothing. Meanwhile, Caroline’s purchases all looked like it came from Rachel Green’s closet.

Seriously, the twins were about as similar as night and day –and it showed in the way they each carried themselves.

º º º

Caroline set Andy down to stand on the floor. She trapped the toddler between her knees as she shot off a quick text.

“I’m letting Mom know that we’ll be heading home soon,” she’d said.

And Andy immediately perked up, “Mommy home?”

“Not yet, Muffin. But soon.” Caroline frowned at a text that she got from their Mother.

“What is it?” Cassidy asked.

“Nothing,” the girl sighed. “Just…she may have another late night at the office.” Caroline looked pointedly at her sister, “And _you-know-who’s_ not going to take that news very well.” They both looked down at their baby sister who had reached out to play with the frayed hole in Cassidy’s jeans.

“It’s going to be impossible to get her to sleep.” Caroline said at the same time her phone buzzed again. She swiped it open. “Hm. Mom says she thinks she found a sitter for Andy.”   

Neither of them brightened at the news.

“I wish she could just take more time off from work,” said Cassidy.

“Well, we both know that’s not going to happen,” Caroline murmured. Her displeasure over the situation was just as clear as her sister’s. “Anyway,” something caught Caroline’s eye over Cassidy’s shoulder. “I’m just going to check out that store over there really quickly and then we can leave.”

Cassidy saw that it was an instrument’s store. “You gonna buy a new bow?”

Caroline seemed surprised.

“What?” Her sister pretended to be offended. “I do listen to _some_ of the things you say, you know.”

The older twin drawled, “Yeah. Sure you do.”  

Before she left, Caroline snatched Andy back onto her lap and pulled back the waistline of Andy’s pull-up. “Okay, you’re good.” The teen said as she dropped a kiss to her little sister’s temple before passing the toddler off to Cassidy. Then she turned to their driver. “Joe, keep an eye on these two for me please. I shouldn’t be too long.”

 

º º º

 

It took all of three minutes for Cassidy to get bored while they waited for Caroline to get back.   

She’d sat Andy on the table and handed the toddler her iphone to watch an episode of Peppa on Netflix. (Don’t worry, it was fine because it was her X and not her Xs. So, if she dropped it, it wouldn’t make much of a difference considering the damage Cassidy had already done to it herself.)

Either way, Andy was contentedly entertained while her older sister’s patience ran thin.

The redhead scanned the food court and her whole face lit up when her eyes landed on a pretzel booth at one end of the string of fast-food stalls.

        A devious smile spread across Cassidy’s face, “Woah.” She mumbled to herself, “Cute girl front and center.”

And with a daring glint in her eyes, she lifted Andy up from the table, brushing the girl’s dark bangs from her face. “Turn up the cuteness, Squirt.” She settled her little sister on her hip. “We’re going in.”

“No, Cassy.” Andy whined at having her show interrupted. “Cassy, _Peppa_.” The little brunette nearly turned into a puddle of tears when she’d accidently closed the app.

“Hey, it’s okay, it’s okay.” Cassidy re-opened Netflix and handed the phone back to her little sister. “Peppa’s right there. Just hold it tight, okay?”

Andy breathed a tiny sigh of relief, “Kay.” She spared a second to smile at her big sister with a whispered _thank you, Cassy_ , before returning her attention to the phone.

“No problem, Squirt.” Cassidy turned around. “Hey, Joe?”

“Yes, Miss Cassidy?” The man came forward from his spot near the wall.

“You mind watching our things for a bit? I just wanted to run to that booth over there to get the kid a pretzel.” She smiled innocently enough.

Although, the man seemed to see beyond it. He looked over towards the pretzel stand and suddenly there was a glint in his eyes that said he knew just what she was up to. “Of course, Miss Cassidy.”

The teen smiled kindly at him, “Thanks, Joe.” She paused before taking off, “Oh, uh…would you like anything?”

He considered her question. “No thank you,” He said. “I’m alright, although I do appreciate your asking.”

Cassidy shrugged, “Okay!”

And she was off.

 

º º º

 

Cassidy approached the Mr. Pretzel stall with a confident stride.

“Hi.” She smiled in greeting at the cashier.

It was a girl with light brown hair that came down just to her shoulders from the red hat she wore. She’d had grey eyes and a seemingly sweet persona that made Cassidy all the more comfortable with speaking to her.

“Hi,” the cashier returned her smile. “What can I get for you today?”

At the sound of a new voice, Andy finally looked up from Cassidy’s phone. “Cassy?” The toddler looked at her sister while handing the device over. The teen assumed Andy wanted her to pause her show, and she saw that she was right when her little sister nodded.

Then Andy smiled widely at the girl standing on the other side of the counter. “Hello!” the little girl chirped.

The cashier cooed, “Oh, hello there.” The girl’s smile was just as wide as Andy’s. “And who might you be?” She directed her question at Andrea.

The toddler beamed at the girl’s cheerful response. “I’m An-dee Pree- _slee_ ,” she announced brightly from Cassidy’s arms.

The girl giggled, looking back at Cassidy as she gushed. “Oh, she’s just _adorable_.”

“Yeah,” Cassidy looked at her little sister proudly. “I can’t argue with that.”

“Is she your daughter?”

“Yup – wait, what? _No!”_ Cassidy shook her head and laughed, “Me? A mom? _Nooo._ She’s my little sister.”

“Oh, okay. Well you have an adorable little sister.”

“Yeah, I’m Cassidy! ...By the way. And you’re…?” Cassidy squinted in uncertainty at the girl’s name tag. 

“Jolie,” the girl -Jolie- introduced herself. “It’s French,” she said, amused as Cassidy struggled to pronounce it correctly. 

“ _Jolie_.”

“There you go,” the girl smiled at her.

“So, you speak French?”

“ _En fait, oui je le fais._ That I do.” Jolie kept smiling at her. _“Et je dois dire…que vous avez vraiment de beaux yeux._ ”

Cassidy stared blankly before breaking out into nervous laughter. “Yeah, uhhm, I’m totally failing French right now soo...”

Jolie’s smile hadn’t faltered, “I said you have really beautiful eyes.” She hummed, “They’re quite blue.”

“Oh!” Cassidy turned the same shade as her hair. “Th-thank you! I mean, you’ve got beautiful eyes too, and hair. And just-” She wave at the girl’s entire physique before exhaling audibly. Her shoulders sagged in her effort to get her thoughts across. “You’re really pretty,” she simply decided. 

Meanwhile Andy, completely oblivious to the teens’ flirtatious banter, pointed at a fresh tray of pastries that were slipped onto the counter. “Cookie, Cassy?” She looked up at her sister.

“You mean the pretzel? That’s a pretzel, Squirt. Not a cookie.”

“It’s better than a cookie, actually.” Jolie commented.

“Oh, yeah?” Cassidy smirked.

“Mhmm! The crust is especially soft and if fresh from the oven like those ones right there, the little sprinkles of salt or sugar just melt right in your mouth. It’s heaven on earth, really.”  

Cassidy gave her a look. “They knew just what they were doing when they put you at this cash register, hadn’t they?”

The girl smirked back, feigning innocence. “Whatever do you mean?”

“Okay, then.” Cassidy bit her lip. “I’ll take a small cup of cinnamon pretzel bits for the Squirt here, and a pepperoni pretzel to go.”

Andy frowned. She pushed her face close to her sister’s and cupped her little hands around Cassidy’s ear. “Say _please_ , Cassy.” 

And really?

It was such a poor job at whispering. 

However, Jolie seemed impressed. “So, you’re adorable _and_ mannerly.”

Cassidy chuckled, rolling her eyes affectionately at her baby sister before reiterating, “And a pepperoni pretzel to go,  _please_.”

Andy smiled proudly at her big sister, while Jolie grinned in amusement at the both of them. “Okaay, that’ll be ten-fifteen.”

“You guys take debit?”

“One sec.” The girl quickly pulled out a payment terminal machine as a line was beginning to form behind the redhead. 

Once Cassidy’s card had been approved, Jolie (without asking if she wanted a receipt) copied a receipt for her. She scribbled something on the slip of paper and handed it to her. “Okay, here you go! Your order will be at the end. It was nice meeting you Andy _.”_ She smiled sweetly at the grinning toddler before waving them off. 

At the end of the counter Cassidy unfolded the receipt to see a phone number scrawled at the bottom. 

She looked up in glee and the playful look Jolie sent her turned the teen’s insides into mush. 

“Way to go, Squirt!” She whisper-yelled and gave Andy a small high five. 

“Excuse me?” 

Someone behind them had tapped Cassidy on the shoulder causing her to turn around. 

“Hi, um, is it okay if we got a picture with you?” Two girls and a guy not much younger than her were stood behind her with hopeful expressions. 

At that moment, Cassidy saw Joe quickly making his way towards them to intervene. 

But Cassidy shook her head at him. Her way of telling him it was fine. 

And seriously, she didn’t mind. Given who their mother was and the amount of events she’s attended growing up, she was used to being recognized often in public. Usually, she welcomed the attention.

“Yeah!” Cassidy beamed at the group. “Sure, but my little sister’s gonna have to be in it.”

“That’s even better!” One of the girls exclaimed. 

º º º

After taking a few pictures, Cassidy grabbed their pastries and waved goodbye to the trio.

“It was nice meeting you guys,” she told them kindly before turning away.

By this time, there were a lot more people in the mall than there had been when they first got there. After weaving their way through the maze of tables and chairs, they finally got back to their own spot. Ten minutes later and Cassidy had made it halfway through her giant pepperoni pretzel. Also, Andy had surprisingly finished two whole pieces of her mini bites. The toddler’s hands were coated with sugar, though. And Cassidy found herself needing to pee, so they left their table again in search for a restroom.

They found one easily enough, but Cassidy thought it was stupid that it was on the outside of the food court.

“Now we’ve got to walk all the way back to find Care Bear.” Cassidy said while looking down at Andy who stood at her feet. “You up for walking the whole way back, kid?”

Andy merely hugged Cassidy’s calf until her sister finally reached down to pick her up.

“ _Come on,_ Squirt.” The teen sighed as she resettled the toddler on her hip. “You need to stretch those little legs of yours!” She laughed when Andy only burrowed her face into her sister’s neck with a yawn. “Oh, it’s your nap time isn’t it?” Cassidy checked the time on her phone, “Still – not all of us have someone to carry us around all day.” She patted Andy’s butt with a mumble, “You’re lucky I love you.”

 

º º º

 

In all the years of her adolescence, Cassidy has done many stupid things.

_Many_ …stupid things.

And in that time, usually, when she was about to add something even more foolish to the list, it was like a bell went off in her head. It served as a warning to think properly about what she was about to do, and yet she failed to take heed every. single. time.

She and Andy were on their way back to the food court when she spotted it – a piercing booth in the center aisle of their wing of the mall.

She looked away from the booth to her drowsy little sister and that little bell in her head went off like a siren.

She urged herself. _Keep walking, Cassidy._

Again, she stared at the heavily tattooed booth attendant and looked back at her baby sister’s unpierced ears.

Then Cassidy thought back on those beautiful diamond encrusted heart earrings they saw at Tiffany & Co. earlier.

And before the teen could think better of what she was about to do, before she even realized at all what she was doing, her feet took her towards the piercing booth.

 

º

 

        Caroline hadn’t expected to spend as much time as she had looking for a new bow for her cello.

        But after being in the presence of a particularly persuasive salesman for over half an hour, she was proud of herself for turning down the suggestion of buying a new cello altogether. _Five_ times. Sure, she had the money for it (or rather her mother had the money for it) but, unlike her twin sister, Caroline didn’t believe in nonsensical spending.

        Anyway, she was caught up in checking her email when she finally got back to their table.

        “Ah. Miss Caroline, you’re back.”

The sound of Joe’s voice got Caroline to look up from her phone. And when she saw that both of her sisters were missing from the table, panic immediately settled in her chest. Her eyes were the size of saucers as she asked the man, “Joe…where’s Cassidy and Andy?”

“Miss Cassidy and Miss Andrea have just gone to the restroom.” Joe peeked at his wrist watch, “Although, that was over fifteen minutes ago.”

“That can’t be good…” Dread settled in the teen’s stomach.

And as it turns out, Caroline had every right to feel apprehensive because she soon spotted her twin and their little sister heading towards them… and it wasn’t a pretty picture.

Cassidy was holding a teary-eyed Andy who held a drippy, single-scooped ice-cream cone with both hands.

At first Caroline thought that _maybe_ Andy fell down, or _maybe_ the toddler had a rare tantrum over missing their mother and Cassidy bought the little girl some ice cream to take her mind off things.

She really wanted to give her sister the benefit of the doubt.

Just _maybe_ her sister hadn’t done something so distinctly _Cassidy_ for once –like flooding the upstairs bathroom or – or shoveling snow in a bin and bringing it back upstairs to build an indoor snowman.

_‘It’s too cold for me to be outside, Care!’_  Cassidy had argued with her twin one morning shortly after New Year’s Day.

_‘Are you serious!?’_ Caroline yelled right back, _‘You idiot! That doesn’t make it okay for you to bring snow **inside our house!** ”_  

Caroline figured she should have known better though.

She immediately shut down the thought that her sister could be responsible for once when she figured out the reason behind their baby sister’s tears.    

        Caroline’s jaw hit the floor.

“Cassidy… _what.did.you.do_?” She cupped her mouth in disbelief. “Ohmigod, _Cassidy!”_

        Caroline was staring at a little diamond earring that sat sparkling in Andy’s little swollen, reddened earlobe.

        Andy with her tear-stained cheeks had been making tiny kitten licks at her ice cream cone before politely asking her distressed older sister, “Wan’ some, Carrie?”

The question was followed by a wet sniffle and it broke Caroline’s heart. She had smiled kindly at her baby sister but declined the offer.

Cassidy’s bribery was written all over it. She couldn’t possibly enjoy it even if she wanted to.

 “No, Muffin. I think that’s all yours.” Caroline said as she took a piece of tissue and gently wiped the toddler’s mouth. “Thank you though, you’re so sweet for offering,” she said.  

Andy gave her a watery smile and Caroline turned a sharp eye to her twin.

“Mom’s going to kill you. I hope you know that.”

        Cassidy seemed to disagree though. “Oh, come _ooon_.” She exclaimed, “It’s not that bad! I mean, look at her. She’s fine. And it’s _pretty!”_

Ignoring her twin sister, Caroline stared at Andy for a second, “Cassidy?”

“Hm?”

“Where’s the other earring?”

“Sorry, what?” She not-so-discreetly tried to cover one of Andy’s ears.

“The other earring, Cassidy. Why is only one of her ears pierced?”

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t try to cover it up, I already saw it! Cassidy, why does she only have one ear pierced?”

Caroline’s question was met with silence.

 “ _Seriously?_ **How** did you manage to _screw up **your screw up?!”**_

Cassidy sighed, “She was crying really badly, Care. I couldn’t have her go through with it.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t have had her ‘go through with it’ in the first place! Now you’ve got our little sister looking like she belongs with a fleet of pirates!”

“Hey! It’s not so bad.” Cassidy tried to defend herself, “The whole one-ear-pierced thing was pretty popular at one point in time. I think.”

“According to who, Cass!?People without class? Where did you even have this done? Did the person have a license or any kind of certification?”

That gave Cassidy pause as she looked completely unsure. “Well, duh, Caroline. _Of course_ I made sure they were...c-certified.”

Caroline shook her head at her twin sister. “Give her to me.” Caroline softened her tone, “Come here, Muffin.” She held her arms out and Andy came easily while her sisters bickered. “How we’re related is a mystery to me,” Caroline said to her twin, walking ahead towards the exit of the mall.

“Joe, leave the bags! Don’t help her. She can carry them to the car all by herself.”

 

 

º

 

        Later that night, Caroline was in the middle of her nighttime reading when Miranda got home.

        Of course the teen had told their mother about what took place earlier at the mall today. Which was why it was no surprise to her, what happened the second the front door of their home closed shut.   

Caroline could have sworn the roof of the penthouse shook with her mother’s exclamation.

 “Cassidy Noel Priestly! You _plunged holes_ in your little sister!?”

 

º

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope the interviewing portion wasn't boring. There wasn't any MirAndy interaction in this chapter (i knoww) but the next chapter will have a lot of that.
> 
> I don't know how to feel about this chapter so let me know what you think! Comments drive me to keep this shit going :D

**Author's Note:**

> [1.] Miranda is 37, yes, but picture her still with her iconic silver hair.  
> [2.] In case you’re wondering about her speech patterns and whatnot, Andy is technically a year old, but she’s closer to being two.  
> [3.] The twins are 16.  
> [4.] Miranda’s first husband Stephen, is Andy’s biological father.  
> [5.] Hunter, Miranda’s second husband, has no genetic ties to Andy but treated her as though she were his throughout the short duration of he and Miranda’s marriage/relationship. 
> 
> But yeah. Again. Archive of Our Own deleted Nothing Like Her Love.  
> I mean, I took down the text myself BUT I kept the story up because I wanted to have the COMMENTS TO CHERISH and I was going to re-post it eventually.  
> I only found out that they took it down shortly before posting this. I can't even find you guys' comments from my email. This was extremely upsetting...but anyway.  
> Let me know what you thought of this new story. I was trying to write the story as a whole THEN would've started posting but we're already a month in the new year and I couldn't resist. So...updates may not be as consistent as I originally planned but I do have the entire story fleshed out. SO. It's just a matter of me writing it. 
> 
> XO - Wynn


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